Amnesty calls for end of death penalty

Amnesty International, the London-based human rights group, has called on Malawi President Bakili Muluzi to take bold steps to scrap the death penalty, media reports said on Friday. In a letter Stefan Berger of Amnesty International said the organisation welcomed Muluzi's refusal for the past five years to endorse the death penalty. Berger, however, expressed concern that capital punishment was still on the statute books. "Unlike any other form of punishment, the death penalty is irrevocable and despite the most stringent safeguards, there is the risk of the death penalty being inflicted on innocent people," Berger said.